Andrew Matheson, The Point After: Watsonville's Contreras, incredibly, becomes second back to break rushing record this season

Have you ever wanted to break the Santa Cruz County single-game rushing record, a mark that once stood for 26 years? It's perhaps the most prestigious of the single-game records in the county (Hey, all teams run the football, right?), and it could be all yours.

But the time to act is now, because the blueprint is out. Everyone is doing it.

Just make sure you have these simple ingredients:

1. You need to have a hard-working offensive line, one that makes textbook blocks and stays true to its assignments throughout the game.

2. You need to be a running back with big-play ability, a hard-working type that has the heart and desire to go all game and put the team on your back.

3. You need to work together.

And that's it! Bottle this plan and you too can become the county's single-game rushing leader. It's that simple!

"...

Wait, it is?

"As long as everyone is going 100 percent and giving it their all, it can happen," said Sergio Melendrez, a senior left tackle for the Watsonville High football team. "You've just got to be hungry."

OK, so maybe there is a lot more that goes into earning the county's rushing mark, a lot more that has to go right -- one of those stars-aligning deals. But the fact is, the single-game rushing mark that once stood for 26 years after Soquel's Dan Johnston ran for 313 yards on 19 carries in 1977 has since been broken four times in the last 10 years -- twice already this season.

Pajaro Valley's Anthony Cantrell racked up 362 yards on 25 attempts against Gonzales on Sept. 15, a ridiculous 14.48-yards-per-carry average that carried Cantrell into the end zone five times. It was 18 yards more than the previous mark of 344, set by Scotts Valley's Kyle Hardwick in 2007, and 49 yards more than Johnston's long-standing record.

But Cantrell's record, incredibly, lasted for 27 days. Last Saturday, Watsonville's Roger Contreras, all 5-foot-5 and 135 pounds of him, became the big man atop the county's record books when he dashed to 379 yards and five touchdowns on 24 attempts against North Salinas.

"I didn't even know about it. My linemen did," Contreras said of the rushing mark. "They kept me going and were telling me they wanted to beat the record. I think they take more pride in it than I do.

"I just wanted to finish with a win. I just wanted to finish the game."

So, what's up? How does a record, which had only been broken three times in the last 50 years, suddenly snap twice within a month? Think about it: The record was held by three different leaders (Watsonville's Larry Ogden in 1954; SLV's Randy Ward in 1957; and Soquel's Johnston in 1977) before 2003, and now four leaders ever since. It's perhaps more statistical coincidence than growing trend, but the sample size is still too small to make any sweeping conclusions.

And running for a record isn't exactly something that comes with a how-to guide, either.

A lot has to go right on both sides of the football.

"There's a lot of different things that come up for players to have a big game," Watsonville coach John Montante said. "With the way Pajaro runs its offense, you know Cantrell is going to be their workhorse but you also have to account for other running backs because of the misdirection.

"With us, we spread it out. We use deception, we hide the ball, and you can't focus on one player. "... I wouldn't be surprised if (Soquel's) Fabiano Hale breaks it before the season is over, too."

Weapons sure help. For Contreras, quarterback Eddie Mares proved to be nearly as unstoppable, running for 166 yards and two touchdowns and throwing for 169 yards and three touchdowns, keeping the Vikings defense off balance.

"I think early on they were focused on Eddie more," Contreras said.

Not to sound mean, but North Salinas' defense had to do its part, too, while its offense had to keep pace with Watsonville and make sure the game was a shootout -- not a blowout.

Running clocks don't usually help when breaking records.

Having a feature back like Contreras is key as well. With 102 attempts on the season, the diminutive senior has 83 more carries than the next running back on the Wildcatz, and often handles the majority of the rushing workload game in and game out.

Not everyone employs this strategy, though. Aptos has perhaps the most potent ground game in Santa Cruz County, but it implements nearly 10 different ball carriers a game -- seeking a strong balance among its many weapons.

Monte Vista Christian and even San Lorenzo Valley split carries among a strong pair of backs.

That's not to say any of these teams couldn't have the next leader atop the record books, perhaps even by season's end.

"He's our ATM. It's huge. It's very beneficial," Montante said of Contreras. "When in doubt, call for someone to go to the ATM and you'll get money out of it.

"He's a very important piece and we call upon him when we need something."

Locked in a back-and-forth battle with North Salinas, Watsonville called upon Contreras when it needed a score in its 65-50 victory. Contreras had touchdown runs of 41, 63, 83, 49 and 35 yards -- a total of 271 yards that, alone, would have placed him 11th on the all-time list.

"I like it. It puts a lot of pressure on me and I like the pressure. It makes me want to do better," Contreras said of being a feature back. "I believe in myself and I don't think about the guys across from me or how big they are. It's just "... play. Play ball."

You don't wake up in the morning thinking you're going to become the next leading rusher in Santa Cruz County. That just doesn't happen.

No, for one back to accomplish as much, everyone on the field has a bit of a role.

And even then, there's still no guarantee.

"But if everyone puts the hard work in, they'll top it. Nothing is impossible," Contreras said of his record falling some day.

The fact that it's been broken twice in the same month doesn't lessen the honor for Contreras. A record broken is a record broken.

"And records are meant to be broken," Melendrez said.

But the short time Cantrell enjoyed at the top makes Contreras a little uneasy. Who knows, maybe another record will fall on Nov. 10, when Cantrell and the Grizzlies play Contreras and the Catz for the Belgard Kup. First one to 400 yards rushing wins.

The way this season is going, would you really be surprised?

"After the season, if no one breaks it, then I'll feel honored to have the record," Contreras said. "I feel honored right now, but I'll be more comfortable after the season.